“They have a few loose Tie Kuan Yins at their store in Chicago. I have two of them — one that’s a more roasted and one that’s a little greener. The greener one was about 30% more...”
Read full tasting note

“This tea has been opened for a while so it is starting to loose some of its potency, but when opened if I was careful I could steep it about 11 times, 7 or 8 of which would have really developed...”
Read full tasting note

“Unsure exactly which type of Ti Kuan Yin this one is (it was gifted to me by my mother in a decorative tin), but it is a highly graded one. Appears to be from China (the ones from Taiwan are brown,...”
Read full tasting note

7 Tasting Notes

Hmmm, I’m not sure which version of this tea they served… so I’ll pick one of the three listed at random.
The tapioca was a tad mushy, but the tea was fabulous!!! and with the milk (after my previous dairy free experience) it was better than I had dared to hope :)
There was a distinct floral aspect, almost jasmine-ish in my opinion, but I didn’t mind because of the milk.
I think I enjoy the osmanthus more though, I wonder if they would serve that with milk as well?? oh and I found out that the osmanthus I purchased not long ago from their store is not the same as what they use for the bubble tea! She showed me the tin it comes out of, and the price tag said $38, which is double what I paid! and my bag had double the content… sheesh, that is some expensive tea.

They have a few loose Tie Kuan Yins at their store in Chicago. I have two of them — one that’s a more roasted and one that’s a little greener. The greener one was about 30% more expensive.

The more heavily roasted tea was, I thought, perfectly characteristic tie kuan yin. It hit all the high notes, and was a solid tea. I’d put it at about 75 and would highly recommend it if you’re around a Ten Ren store and want to try out an authentic Tie Kuan Yin.

But, the one you should look out for the one that’s greener and more expensive. It had all the characteristic tie kuan yin taste, but also had a fantastic mouth, no bitterness, and an almost creamy aftertaste. Really excellent.

Both teas held up to 4 infusions. I’m pretty sure they’d hold up to 5 or 6, but I haven’t had the time to sit around and do more than 4. The more roasted tea held it’s flavor stronger.

Preparation

This tea has been opened for a while so it is starting to loose some of its potency, but when opened if I was careful I could steep it about 11 times, 7 or 8 of which would have really developed flavour.

This is a green anxi style oolong with tightly rolled spring green leaves when dry. After a wash I steeped this tea 6 times this time before I stopped. This tea can be quite spicy and bitter so ten ren recommended short steeping times starting at 10 seconds and moving up at 5 second intervals. This tea is the most floral of the oolongs that I own that I have tried at the moment its flavours develops into a spicy floral referencing gardenia in scent and taste with a strong bitter undertone. Throughout the various steepings it also exhibited notes of a citrus overtone, spicy peach, spinach and green beans moving to the sweet yet bitter taste of coooked greens. It leaves a tingling on the side and back of the tongue and and a dryness at the front of the mouth. This is not my favourite oolong, but it has left me with a desire to taste more floral oolongs and is still an enjoyable experience in itself.

Unsure exactly which type of Ti Kuan Yin this one is (it was gifted to me by my mother in a decorative tin), but it is a highly graded one. Appears to be from China (the ones from Taiwan are brown, and these are a bright green). First steeping: Pale color, floral aroma with a bit of vegetal hints at the end (how I miss my aroma cup right now, as I’m sitting in my office). Very light, smooth taste. Can’t wait for the second steeping – it’s always the best.

my friend first introduced this to me because he didn’t like the taste of it; he thinks it “tastes like dirt.” but personally, this is one of my favorite teas of all time. i find the earthy taste very comforting and it cleanses my palate.

Just drank this last night. My dad got a box of vaccuum-packed bags that held a pot’s worth of tea each as a gift from a business trip to China. Apparently, I’ve only ever had Taiwanese varieties of Ti Kuan Yin before, because I thought it was going to be brown instead of green.

This has something to do with the flavor, because it’s a lot less “woody” than I was expecting. It’s quite a bit more floral and generally more mellow than the Taiwanese kind. Overall a very pleasant drink, but not particularly different from any other Chinese oolong.